Black, White and Gray | Page 9

what she
liked, she never appeared to like what she did, and was always wanting
something different, and complaining about everything.
"Let's go back now," she said at last, dragging her feet slowly through a
puddle as she spoke; "my feet are wet."
"I should think they were," sighed Miss Mervyn. "Come, let us make
haste home, so that you may have your boots and stockings changed."
But the perverse Philippa would not hurry. She now lingered behind the
others, and even stood still now and then, causing Miss Mervyn great
misery. "She will certainly take cold," she murmured. "Cannot you
persuade her, my dears, to come on."

"Let's have a race, Philippa, as far as the house," called out Dennis.
Running fast had been forbidden, so it was perhaps on that account
attractive to Philippa, who at once consented to the proposal, and Miss
Mervyn, thinking it the less of two evils, made no objection.
"Maisie must have a start because she's the smallest," said Dennis,
placing his sister a little in front; "now, one, two, three, off!"
The little flying figures sped away towards the house, and Miss Mervyn
following, was pleased to see that Dennis allowed Philippa to win the
race; that would perhaps make her more good-tempered.
"Ha, ha!" exclaimed Philippa, pointing a scornful finger at Maisie as
she came panting up last, with her round cheeks very red. "What a slow
coach! Maisie's too fat to run."
"She's younger than we are," said Dennis, who did not allow any one
but himself to tease his sister.
"There's not much difference," said Philippa, as the children walked up
to the house; "in three weeks it will be my birthday, and I shall be
nine."
"Mine isn't for three more months," said Maisie.
"Any one would think me quite twelve years old," said Philippa, with
her chin in the air, "because I'm tall and slight. Maisie has such a baby
look.--I'm going to have a party on my birthday."
"Are you?" said Maisie with sudden interest.
She gave Dennis's arm a squeeze, to make him understand she had just
got a good idea; but he only stared round at her, and said, "Don't pinch
so," and Philippa continued:
"Yes, I shall have a party, and a birthday cake, and magnificent
presents."

"Can you guess what they will be?" asked Maisie.
"Mother says she won't tell me what hers is," said Philippa; "but I shall
make her."
"How?"
"Oh," said Philippa carelessly, "if I want to know very much, I shall cry,
and then I always get what I want."
Philippa was not in a nice mood to-day, and did not improve at
luncheon, for her wants and whims seemed to engross every one's
attention. If Aunt Katharine tried to turn the conversation to something
more interesting, Philippa's whining voice broke in, and Mrs Trevor at
once ceased to listen to anything else.
It was a relief to the whole party, when, early in the afternoon, Aunt
Katharine and her charges were settled once more in the pony-cart, and
on their way home to Fieldside.
"Don't you know why I poked you just after the race?" said Maisie to
her brother, as they drove out of the lodge gates.
"Because Philippa said such stupid things, I suppose," said Dennis.
"It wasn't that at all," she replied earnestly; "it was because I'd just
thought of a good home for one of the kittens. Wouldn't it be splendid
to give it to Philippa for a birthday present? It will be just three weeks
old."
"H'm," said Dennis doubtfully. He really thought it a capital idea, but
he never liked to encourage Maisie too much.
She looked round at him, her brown eyes bright with excitement.
"It would be a magnificent home," she continued, "more than a good
one. It would have nice things to eat, and soft things to lie on, and a
collar round its neck, and all those beautiful rooms to run about in!"

"I suppose they'd be kind to it," said Dennis. "I don't think I should like
to live at Haughton Park."
"Of course not, without Aunt Katharine agreed," said Maisie; "but
supposing Haughton Park was hers, wouldn't you like it better than
Fieldside?"
"No," said Dennis promptly; "not half so well. At Fieldside you've only
to run down the avenue, and there you are in the middle of the village,
and only a short way off the Manor Farm. And at Haughton you have
to go through the Park, where no one lives, and through three gates, and
then you're only in the Upwell road. It's much duller."
"There are the deer," said Maisie.
"But you can't talk to the deer," replied Dennis; "and though they're
tame, they're rather stupid, I think."
"Well," said Maisie, "I like some